Bhaktapur Durbar Square, Kathmandu Valley, Nepal

Bhaktapur Durbar Square after 2015 Nepal Earthquake

On 25 April 2015, another major earthquake damaged many buildings in the square. The main temple in Bhaktapur's square lost its roof, while the Vatsala Devi temple, famous for its sandstone walls and gold-topped pagodas, was demolished by the quake.

A tourist in Bhaktapur, a short distance from Kathmandu, caught on camera the moment Saturday's devastating earthquake hit the city causing thousands of deaths and widespread damage.

Bhaktapur Durbar Square after 2015 Nepal Earthquake

Bhaktapur Durbar Square

Bhaktapur Durbar Square after 2015 Nepal Earthquake

Bhaktapur Durbar Square after 2015 Nepal Earthquake

The Red Cross Society of China provided life-saving help to earthquake-stricken Nepal.

Bhaktapur Durbar Square

Bhaktapur Durbar Square, Kathmandu Valley, Nepal

Bhaktapur Durbar Square, Kathmandu Valley, Nepal

Bhaktapur Durbar Square, Kathmandu Valley, Nepal

Bhaktapur Durbar Square, Kathmandu Valley, Nepal

Bhaktapur Durbar Square, Kathmandu Valley, Nepal

Swayambhunath Stupa (Monkey Temple), Kathmandu, Nepal

Swayambhunath is an ancient religious complex atop a hill in the Kathmandu Valley, west of Kathmandu city. It is also known as the Monkey Temple as there are holy monkeys living in the north-west parts of the temple. The Tibetan name for the site means 'Sublime Trees' (Wylie:Phags.pa Shing.kun), for the many varieties of trees found on the hill. However, Shing.kun may be a corruption of the local Nepal Bhasa name for the complex, Singgu, meaning 'self-sprung'. For the Buddhist Newars in whose mythological history and origin myth as well as day-to-day religious practice, Swayambhunath occupies a central position, it is probably the most sacred among Buddhist pilgrimage sites. For Tibetans and followers of Tibetan Buddhism, it is second only to Boudhanath.